Wine: 2nd Growth Grand Cru Bordeaux

[Mike Buckley]

The grand cru wineries that make red Bordeaux wine are classified into five growths ranked in order from first to fifth. In 1855 when the classification was first done, there were only four first growth grand crus. A fifth one was added in 1973. There are only 14 second growth wineries and Chateau Durfort-Vivens shown below is one of them. When Thomas Jefferson was America's ambassador to France in the 18th century (replacing Benjamin Franklin in that position), he also determined that this winery's quality was immediately behind the first growth wineries.

The information on the label and foil is explained as follows: Chateau Durfort-Vivens is the name of the winery. Margaux is the name of the sub-region in Bordeaux (not to be confused with Chateau Margaux, a first growth winery in that sub-region). 2010 designates the vintage, which is the year the grapes used to make the wine were harvested. Gonzague Lurton (abbreviated as G. Lurton on the foil) is the winery's primary owner.

Setup of Photo 1
The tabletop is an old drop cloth I recently acquired that seems to have been used a lot. A small continuous-light lamp above the top left area of the scene lights the overall scene but more importantly is positioned exactly to brightly display the texture and color of the embossed gold letters. A flash light held above the bottom end of the scene lifts the shadows in the drop cloth.

Setup of Photo 2
The tabletop is brown art paper. A small continuous-light lamp is at the right front area at about a 45-degree angle to the subject.

[Wavelength]

Excellent pair of images

[Kaye Leggett]

As excellent as ever and very pleasing this morning having successfully completed a Dry January

[Shadowman]

Nice set.

[John 2]

Nicely done Mike. I've never had the pleasure of a Margaux in any form although my local super market does have it occasionally in it's fine wine section.

[bje07]

good lesson of set up, and gorgeous pictures

[bje07]

You make me salivate every new thread, nice shot again

[Dave A]

I really like this one Mike. Perspective and soft colors work so well.

Dave

[billtils]

Like everything about these, especially the first one - narrative, image, contents spot on. Started "Febfast" today so will look longingly at them for the next 28 days

[Kaye Leggett]

Started "Febfast" today

...............OMG, I was so convinced it was finished with Dry January !

[Mike Buckley]

Thank you, everyone!

[bnnrcn]

Wow, those are great ! Is that a fat bottle Mike or do the curves on the label make the bottle look fat? I'm stunned by the second image , great use of DOF and super colors

[Mike Buckley]

Thanks, Binnur!

It's a typical Bordeaux bottle. I wonder if it's the size of the label that makes the bottle appear fat to you. The label wraps more than halfway around the bottle, making it impossible to view both sides of the label at the same time. Notice that neither side of the label is displayed in this image due to its large size. Clearly, the label designer didn't consult a photographer.

The photo of the foil that you like so much would not have been possible without using my newly acquired macro lens, which is lots of fun to use. I could have made a similar photo without that lens but I would have had to have cropped it significantly; this image is not cropped.

[Donald]

My goodness, Mike. When do you plan on opening that? Have only ever tasted a Second Growth once before (Cos d'Estournel, 1995) and never a First Growth.

[Mike Buckley]

I have no particular plan as to when to open it, Donald, only to hold it for a very special occasion. I bought it because I was able to get it at a 20% discount.

You're probably aware that though the First Growth wines are prohibitively expensive to all but very few of us, all of the other Growths though still pricey are often 90% less expensive. As an example, I bought this bottle for the same price as twelve coffee drinks at Starbucks. Lots of people will blow through those twelve drinks in as many days without even thinking and then complain about the expense of a very high-end wine. That makes no sense to me.

While making these two photos, I realized that there are 14 Second Growth wines and that I should make a point of drinking one from each winery over the years. Another enjoyable way of taking part in the hobby would be to drink each wine no sooner than ten years after the vintage date, so I may hold to that as well.

[madcrow]

Exceptional image, work, PP skills and setup.

[Mike Buckley]

Thanks, Maurice!

[bnnrcn]

Hi Mike I didn't noticed how big the label was before reading your reply, I think that's the reason which makes the bottle appear fat to me.

Thanks, Binnur!

It's a typical Bordeaux bottle. I wonder if it's the size of the label that makes the bottle appear fat to you. The label wraps more than halfway around the bottle, making it impossible to view both sides of the label at the same time. Notice that neither side of the label is displayed in this image due to its large size. Clearly, the label designer didn't consult a photographer.

The photo of the foil that you like so much would not have been possible without using my newly acquired macro lens, which is lots of fun to use. I could have made a similar photo without that lens but I would have had to have cropped it significantly; this image is not cropped.

[billtils]

With thanks to Mike for the inspiration - and there's nothing like trying it yourself to increase your already considerable appreciation of his skills .

We went out for dinner a couple of days ago with my sister who was visiting from overseas. There it was on the wine list - a Second growth Margaux. The rest was inevitable! This is the first attempt, indoors late afternoon, 90mm Tamron, f/14, 1.6s, available light, ISO400. The background is a tee shirt selected for its colour.

Next step is to try with back and/or side lighting but today's preliminary effort tells me "more work required" - much as expected.






It was yummy, by the way.

[Mike Buckley]

Nice one, Bill! I've never used a tee shirt but I have used a couple dress shirts as tabletops because of their color.

As for the wine, I'm reasonably confident that I've never seen it and I'm certain I've never drunk it. You should know that your good taste was shared by Thomas Jefferson, America's first wine connoisseur. 68 years before your wine was officially classified as a Second Growth Grand Cru in 1855, Jefferson gave it a similar designation.